The famous Archaeology Magazine has named a historic Buddhist temple discovered last year in Pakistan’s Barikot town in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) as one of the Top 10 Discoveries of 2022.
Archaeologist Luca Maria Olivieri of Ca’ Foscari University in Italy and his colleagues discovered the ancient temple in December of last year in collaboration with the provincial department of archaeology and museums.
According to Olivieri’s statement to the magazine, the structure dates back to the end of the second century BC. This makes it the region’s first known Buddhist temple, and it was constructed at a time when Barikot was known as a centre of Buddhist learning and a revered pilgrimage site.
Olivieri stated that he did not believe there were Buddhist structures in the city at such an early date because, until its discovery, archaeologists had not discovered any evidence of Buddhist influence in Barikot prior to the end of the first century A.D.
Moreover, antiquities at the site include a 10-foot-high arched structure upon which a round shrine was later built. A distinctive cone-shaped Buddhist stupa is also housed within the structure.
According to the magazine, Olivieri’s crew was also taken aback by the building’s design, which is common in Buddhist temples of the time but unusual in Gandhara. The crew also discovered Buddhist artworks and inscriptions at the site.
According to sources, the team discovered coins, jewellery, statues, seals, pottery fragments, and other ancient artefacts in addition to the temple. According to the statement, the temple was most likely abandoned in the third century C.E. due to an earthquake.
By the reign of Menander, I, around 150 B.C.E., Buddhism had gained traction in Gandhara, but it was likely practised only by the elite. Swat eventually became a sacred Buddhist centre under the Kushan Empire (30400 C.E. ), which spanned Afghanistan, Pakistan, and northern India. Gandhara was known at the time for its Greco-Buddhist style of art, which rendered Buddhist subjects using Greek techniques.